By Lisa Larson

Prepress Editor

At drupa, Heidelberger Druckmaschinenen announced that it entered into two alliances — with DuPont Color Proofing and Hewlett-Packard Co. — to provide the companies’ color proofing solutions.

Heidelberg signed a non-exclusive original equipment manufacturer agreement with DuPont to sell the company’s Cromalin and WaterProof digital proofing systems, the new Cromalin Color Station desktop and wide-format proofers, the Digital WaterProof iGeneration contract proof system, and the Dylux DI-1050 2-sided imposition proofer.

DuPont’s Digital Cromalin iG4 is one of the products included in the company’s global distribution agreement with Heidelberg. Photo courtesy of DuPont

“Our plan is to offer customers seamless integration with Heidelberg workflow solutions,” said John Groves, president of DuPont Color Proofing. “Ultimately, we believe that customers want standardized proofs that match the print result. Together with Heidelberg we can deliver that promise.”

DuPont’s Cromalin proofing system — the digital version of which is called digital WaterProof in North America — is used by many newspapers to produce color proofs. Color Station is a combination of a PC and an Epson 5000 or 9000 printer.

Heidelberg began the sale, service and support of DuPont proofing systems in North America immediately, and the companies aim to expand the partnership to global markets.

“We see this as a strategic endeavor with DuPont, and as a chance to show our color management technology,” said Ray Cassino, director of Heidelberg USA prepress marketing. “We see proofing as a strategic area, and a necessary ancillary technology for the adoption of computer-to-plate technology.”

Heidelberg also inked a deal with Hewlett-Packard at drupa, and demonstrated two joint proofing solutions based on its own digital front end and graphics workflow solutions and HP’s DesignJet printers. Heidelberg’s Delta and Prinergy workflows powered the HP 1050C large-format printer, and its color management solution was paired with the HP DesignJet Color Pro GA A3+-sized proofer.

Iris blooms for CreoScitex

CreoScitex showcased its wares for the first time as a combined company at drupa, including a lineup of proofing solutions and the latest version of its Profile Wizard Suite color management software. Contributed from the Scitex camp to the CreoScitex partnership was the Iris line of proofers, which are used for color proofing by many newspapers, including The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times.

On display at drupa were the Iris2Print and Iris4Print digital continuous-tone proofers. Appropriate for newspapers, the former offers a two-up imposition format and a 14-by-21-inch imaging area large enough for most broadsheet newspaper pages.

Resolution is user-selectable between 300 dots per inch and 600 dpi. Iris2Print features disposable IrisPens that place three picoliter droplets on the page.

Two software packages, Profile Wizard and ColorZone, work together to obtain proofs from the Iris that closely resemble press results. ColorZone calibrates the Iris and establishes a baseline for print quality of the device. Profile Wizard creates an International Color Consortium profile based on spectrophotometer readings from the same file printed on the Iris and off the press.

A new advanced system configuration for the iProof professional desktop proofing system includes calibration, with support for the X-Rite DTP-41 spectrophotometer and the Profile Wizard Suite. Iris iProof offers selectable resolutions up to 1,200-by-600 dpi, IrisScreen technology for increased predictability, simultaneous image processing and printing, and connectivity to CreoScitex professional workflows.

CreoScitex also introduced the Lotem 800V Proof and the Trendsetter Spectrum 3230+ and 3244+ digital halftone proofing and plating systems. These systems use the same input, resolution, screen parameters and spot function to image both plates and proofs.

Low-cost proofing for OEMs

Harlequin Inc. unveiled RipFlow, its next-generation raster image processor technology, now used in all products, options and tools the company provides to original equipment manufacturers and previewed several color proofing products based on the RipFlow technology.

The new color proofing product lineup includes ProofReady, a new output plug-in for Harlequin ScriptWorks RIPs, SetGold, a calibration utility for OEMs, and ScriptProof.

The ProofReady plug-in for ScriptWorks RIPs provides Harlequin OEMs tools to deliver out-of-the box color quality to their customers using low-cost inkjet printers to produce color proofs. The first release of ProofReady to OEMs supports the Epson Stylus Color 3000, and the Stylus Pro 5000, 7000 and 9000. Planned future releases will add support for Hewlett-Packard and Encad color devices, said Harlequin.

ProofReady includes both error diffusion screening and its own patented stochastic screening, Harlequin Dispersed Screening. Fully calibrated, color managed output is delivered for both screening types, so OEMs and their customers can choose the screening that best fits their requirements.

ProofReady is designed to take advantage of ICC profiles through the use of Harlequin ICC Profile Processor. The output profiles included in ProofReady’s pre-configured color setups can also be incorporated into new color setups based on ICC input profiles created by the OEM or end users. The ProofReady plug-in package includes SetGold, a new calibration utility for OEMs that calibrates and gray-balances a color printer.

Harlequin also previewed ScriptProof, a new ScriptWorks-based RIP scheduled for release early next quarter, targeting the low-cost digital color proofing market. ScriptProof is comprised of a subset of the full ScriptWorks Classic Edition feature set, including a redesigned Java-based graphical user interface.s

Heidelberg USA 
DuPont Color Proofing

800.437.7388 
800.345.9999

www.heidelberg.com 
www.dupont.com/proofing

CreoScitex 
Harlequin

781.275.5150
781.392.1600